Sunday, 17 May 2015

The 2015 Petrona Award for the Best Scandinavian Crime Novel of the Year

On 16 May 2015, at the Gala Dinner at CrimeFest, Bristol, Petrona
Award judges, Barry Forshaw, Dr Katharina Hall and Sarah Ward, announced the
winner of the 2015 Petrona Award for the Best Scandinavian Crime Novel of the
Year.

The winner was The
Silence of the Sea by Yrsa Sigurðardóttir translated by Victoria Cribb and
published by Hodder & Stoughton.

The trophy was presented by the Godmother of modern Scandinavian
crime fiction, Maj Sjöwall, co-author with Per Wahlöö of the Martin Beck
series.

As well as the trophy, Yrsa Sigurðardóttir receives a
pass to and a guaranteed panel at next year's CrimeFest.

-ends-

Notes to editors

When the shortlist was announced in March, the judges wrote of The Silence of the Sea: Yrsa
Sigurðardóttir has said ‘I really love making people’s flesh creep!’, and she
is the supreme practitioner when it comes to drawing on the heritage of
Icelandic literature, and channelling ancient folk tales and ghost stories into
a vision of modern Icelandic society. In Silence
of the Sea, an empty yacht crashes into Reykjavik’s harbour wall: its
Icelandic crew and passengers have vanished. Thóra Gudmundsdóttir investigates
this puzzling and deeply unsettling case, in a narrative that skilfully
orchestrates fear and tension in the reader.

This is the third year of the Petrona Award. The previous winners
are Liza Marklund for Last Will, and
Leif G W Persson for Linda, As In the
Linda Murder, both translated by Neil Smith.

The 2016 Petrona Award will shortly be open for submissions, and
more information on all aspects of the Award can be found on the Petrona Award
website (http://www.petronaaward.co.uk/).